SMALL SALE COSTS ON THE APACHE FOREST 

 By Clifford W. McKibbin 



The Apache is one of the most inaccessible National Forests in 

 the Southwest. In eastern Arizona, midway between the two 

 desert railways, the Santa Fe on the north and the Southern Pa- 

 cific on the south, it has gained the name of "inland." Consider- 

 ing that the sawtimber lies 80 to 125 miles from the nearest point 

 of railroad transportation and that the headquarters are 100 miles 

 from a railroad, the name "inland" is readily understood. The 

 rough, broken character of its southern border and the wide, bar- 

 ren desert on the north, have proved formidable barriers to rail- 

 road or even good road building, so that none of the timber cut 

 from the Forest has ever found its way to any but a strictly local 

 market. 



This market consists of filling the wants of small farm commu- 

 nities and stock raising centers of from 50 to 300 inhabitants, 

 located within and adjoining the Forest, where the demand is 

 chiefly for rough lumber for ranch improvements. The supply 

 is entirely of Western Yellow pine, which until just recently was 

 placed on the m&rket unsurfaced. Near the southern boundary 

 of the Forest the mining towns of Clifton and Metcalf furnish a 

 demand for fuelwood which is met by pinyon and juniper from 

 the woodland type. 



While these conditions of extreme inaccessibility, restricted 

 market and correspondingly small operations may not be peculiar 

 to the Apache Forest alone, they are by no means general and 

 present some rather unusual features which in a measure are 

 reflected in the costs of operation and administration. 



That the data following may be fully understood a brief descrip- 

 tion of the operations is given. 



The mills are equipped with circular saws and cable feed and 

 have a rated capacity of from 8 to 10 M feet a day. The actual 

 output, however, averages only 3 M feet per day during the run- 

 ning season because of the fact that the crews are alternated in 

 the woods and in the mill. Often the mills are not run more than 

 two days each week on this account and operations are usually 

 suspended during at least two of the winter months. 



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